U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres arrived in the Bangladesh capital Dhaka on Thursday to begin a four-day official visit at the invitation of the interim government’s Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus. This is his first visit to Bangladesh since a student-led uprising forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to flee the country last year.
“Every Ramadan, I spend time with Muslim communities living in difficult circumstances, to observe the fast with them [and] help shine a spotlight on their plight. This year I’m in Bangladesh to express my solidarity with Rohingya refugees [and] the Bangladeshi people hosting them,” Guterres shared on social media after his arrival on March 13.
Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Guterres will meet with Yunus today to discuss how the U.N. can better assist with Rohingya repatriation to Myanmar.
Following their meeting on Friday, Guterres and Yunus will fly to Cox’s Bazar to visit the refugee camps, where over one million Rohingya stay temporarily until they can be repatriated to Arakan State, according to the Bangladesh interim government.
Shafiqul Alam, the press secretary to Yunus, told the media on Wednesday that humanitarian aid for the Rohingya has declined “sharply” as the World Food Programme (WFP) struggles with a funding shortfall.
It announced that it will need to reduce monthly food rations for Rohingya refugees from $12.50 to $6 USD per person in April if $81 million USD in funding from donor countries is not forthcoming.
The WFP added that a cut in rations to anything less than $6 USD per person would “fall below the minimum survival level and fail to meet basic dietary needs.”
Approximately 70,000 Rohingya fled their homes in northern Arakan State into Bangladesh last year due to fighting between the Arakan Army (AA) and pro-regime forces, which included Rohingya armed groups.
The AA took control of the entire 168 mile (271 km) long Myanmar-Bangladesh border when it seized Maungdaw Township of northern Arakan on Dec. 8. It now controls 14 of 17 Arakan townships since it launched its state-wide offensive in November 2023.
The Rohingya have been denied citizenship in Myanmar under the 1982 Citizenship Law and do not have freedom of movement inside the country.
Fortify Rights called on Bangladesh and the AA to urgently facilitate cross-border humanitarian aid and border trade to assist conflict-affected residents of Arakan, including the Rohingya, on Wednesday.
A U.N. high-level meeting on the Rohingya crisis is scheduled for September. Yunus has called it a sustainable plan that will resolve Bangladesh’s refugee crisis.
Guterres will depart Bangladesh on March 16.
